Tividale FC

Report

Midland Football League
Premier Division
Saturday 22nd January 2022
Tividale 1-0 Shifnal Town

Tividale “Shif” up a gear

After Tuesday night’s toughie against Rushall Olympic. This was going to be another game with not a lot between the two teams and one that the home side knew that they would have to be on top of their game if they were to get anything out of it. The two sides had met at the start of the season in the Extra Preliminary Round of the FA Cup. A game in which Tividale progressed into the next round with a 2-0 win.

There were three changes from the team that started the Rushall game, with Peter Hawk, Brad Welding and Ethan Muckley coming in for Louis Connor, Hayden Reeves, and Lewis McPike, respectively.

Tividale started the game well and had the visitors pressed back in the opening exchanges and in the 3rd minute they were close to going ahead when from a Curtis Cocking cross Elliott Hartley was free at the back post and with his form at present you would have been forgiven if you expected the ball to hit the back of the net, but he fired over the bar.

Shifnal’s first real threat came in the 11th minute when a Brandon Tanomjit shot took a deflection but keeper Hawk was still able to palm it away. Then a minute later former Tividale man Matthew Barnes-Homer controlled a ball into him with his back to goal. He turned his marker and got his shot away but again Hawk was equal to it.

A Hawk long clearance on the quarter hour was headed on by Muckley for Hartley who had outpaced the Shifnal defence. But some great work from Shifnal keeper George Scott who was alert enough to race of his line and clear the danger. In doing so he took out Hartley in his area but the referee deemed he had played the ball first and waived away the home side’s appeals.

Hartley was in the action 2 minutes later when he hit a screamer of a half volley from a Welding cross, but Scott brilliantly turned it over the bar. On 22 minutes Hartley could have been celebrating his hat trick, when he ran onto a through ball and steered the ball past Scott but also the wrong side of the keepers far post. On 29 minutes the action was then at the other end. A Sam Griffiths free kick swung into the Tividale area was only partly cleared and when it was put back in Sean Jones headed straight into the arms of Hawk. Bustin then hit a snapshot on 31 minutes from outside the penalty area that Scott kept out.

The industrious Muckley then surged forward on 33 minutes but his shot was well blocked by a Shifnal defender. The rebound came out to Jason Wood and his low drive was deflected wide for a corner. On 35 minutes Matt Jones intercepts a short Tividale pass and drives down the left flank, he finds Callum Graybrook but he fires over the bar.

As the half neared to a close there was no let-up in the goalmouth action and in the 40th minute Muckley with some great hold up play, lays the ball off to Bustin but his shot does not trouble Scott.

Shifnal had the final chance of the half when in the 43rd minute Jack Fishman crossed into the Tividale area but Barnes-Homer could not get his header on target.

Half Time:- Tividale 0-0 Shifnal Town

Shifnal started the second half how they ended the first, on the attack. And after a marauding run, Andre Brown forced Hawk into a smart save after 47 minutes. On 54 minutes Tividale got as close as either side did to breaking the deadlock. A Bustin shot came back off the bar with Scott beaten. Hartley was first to the loose ball, but his shot took a deflection and, in the end, it was comfortable for Scott. A Hartley corner a minute later was met by Tividale skipper Matt Hunt but his header was cleared off the line.

The game was still wide open and in a 15-minute spell although the intensity dropped off and the passing was not finding their targets, the chances kept on coming and most of them to Shifnal. Bustin dragged a shot well wide of the post. At the other end Brown then hit one straight at Hawk. Hawk then gets down well to deny Tanomjit at his near post. Then Graybrook fired over in the 70th minute.

As the game moved into the final 15 minutes. It was looking more likely that one goal could well settle this game as Wood found some room but fired wide. Shifnal then had their own penalty appeal but again it was waived away by referee David Hinton and the appeals also seemed a little half hearted. Brown was again put in on goal in the 81st minute but again Hawk was equal to his shot.

The deadlock was finally broken in the 83rd minute. A Luke Carter free kick into the box is met by substitute Dan Smith. His first-time shot was parried away by Scott. The balls fell nicely for Hartley at the back post and he steers the ball home. The goal seemed to deflate the visitors as the expected bombardment never really came and anything that was hit into the Tividale box was too long and comfortably claimed by Hawk.

In the end Tividale ran down the clock quite comfortably and claimed the three points

Full Time:- Tividale 1-0 Shifnal Town

Tividale: – 1. Peter Hawk, 2. Tom Hurdman, 3. Brad Welding, 4. Luke Carter, 5. Dan Bryson 6. Matt Hunt, 7. Darragh Bustin, 8. Curtis Cocking, 9. Ethan Muckley (17. Dan Smith 74), 10. Jason Wood 11. Elliott Hartley

Unused Subs: – 12. Cameron Milne, 14. Lewis McPike, 15. Hayden Reeves, 16. Joseph Burroughs.